Chair structure



9, 1952 c; HQVEN El'AL I CHAIR STRUCTURE Filed May 18, 1950 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTORS Alfred Gill oven. "J"

IVZzlfer E. JVbvdmaz-lt BY I g z 5 if D 9, 1952 A. c. HOVEN ET AL CHAIR STRUCTURE 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed May 18, 1950 INVENTOR5 Alfred C. Hodeu 'd' TVizlfer 15'. JVbz-dnzarfa:

Dec. 9, '1952 A. C. HOVEN ET AL CHAIR STRUCTURE 3 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed May 18, 1950 INVENTORS Alfred C.HOI)en *h n alfev E. Mrdmavli;

Patented Dec. 9, 1952 UN lT'ED' STATES Fra iiZN-T OF F 1. CE

CHAIR STRUCTURE of New Jersey Application May 18, 1950, Serial No. 162,742

Claims. 1,

The present invention relates to chair structures and more particularly to seats" of the connected type used in theaters, auditoriums and the like.

The primary objects of the invention are to provide improved chair. supporting standards for usein rows of connecting seating, whereby the seats and backs of adjacent chairs are supported on a common standard known in the industry as a middle standard; to provide such a standard which may be fabricated from sheet metal, and in which are incorporated novel means. for adapting the standard to diiierent floor inclines, and for attaching an arm rest to the upper end thereof; to provide connected seating in which the chair seats are of the selfrising type, being pivotally mounted on the standards for independent movements tolowered positions for occupancy and to raised positions of non-use, and to provide hollow supporting standards for the seats in which are housedthe mechanisms for normally urging the seats to their raised positions of non-use; to provide such supporting standards having novel stop means thereon. cooperable with stop means on the seat for limiting the raising and lowering movements of the seat; and in general to provide connected seating which. is simply and sturdy in construction, quiet and efiicient in operation, and attractive in appearance.

Illustrative embodiments of the invention are shown in. the accompanying. drawings, wherein:

Figure l is a right-hand side and rear perspective view of an end chair of a row of connected seating;

Figure 2 is a left-hand side and front perspective view of thechair shown in. Figure 1;

Figure 3 is an enlarged left-hand side elevational view of the chair;

Figure 4 is. an enlarged fragmentary horizontal sectional view of two adjacent chairs supported by a common middle standard, the section being. taken on lines. 4-4 of Figures. 3 and5;

Figure 5 is an. enlarged fragmentary vertical sectional view of the same taken, on line 5-5 of Figure 3.;

Figure 6 is a fragmentary vertical sectional view of parts thereof taken on lines 6- 5 of Figures 5 and '7;

Figure 7 is a fragmentary top plan view of certain parts of a chair supporting standard with parts of the arm rest broken away;

Figure 8 is a side elevational view of a chair supporting middle standard per se, of slightly modified construction;

Figure 9 is a horizontal sectional view thereof taken online 9-4) of Figure 8; and

Figures 10 and 11 are fragmentary side elevational views of standards of the type shown in Figure 8 but adapted to difierent inclines of floor.

Referring now in detail to these drawings the chair shown in Figures 1 and 2 generally comprises a seat l2 and a back l3 mounted on supporting standards, one of said standards being of the row-end type and being designated l4, and the other standard being of the middle type and being designated generally 1-5 The: row-end standards may be of any suitable construction and are not'shown anddescribed. herein in. detail. The middle standards, used as common supports for adjacent chairs in rows of connected seating are of the construction, shown in Figures 1 through 7, only one such. middle standard I5 being herein described.

The standard I5 is constructed as shown of sheet metal, and generally comprises an upper panel member I 6 and a lower U-shaped leg member ll. The upper panel member comprises up.- right side panels l8 connected along their forward edges to the upstanding front leg element IQ of the leg member ll as by welding 2.0. The side panels l8 extend rearwardly from. the front leg element in spaced apart relation, and near the rear thereof these panels are turned mutually inwardly and then rearwardly and are secured together in their rearward regions as by welding.

2! to form a rearwardly extending wall 22 to which the adjacent sides of adjacent chair backs i3 are secured by any suitable means, such means being here shown as screws or rivets 23 passing through apertures 24 on the wings 25, of the. chair backs, and also. through apertures 26 in the wall. 22 (see Figure 3).

The.- rear leg element, 21 of. the U-shaped leg member, H is, cross-sectionally U-shaped' and embraces the. rear wall 22 of the upper panel member on. both sides of said. wall, and this rear leg element 2.! is, secured to the panel member, as, by welding 23, atv any selected height so as to meet given conditions of floor incline. As shown in. full lines in. Figure 3 the rear leg element has been welded to the panel member so as to produce a middle standard for a level floor, the standard being secured to. the floor by suitable meanssuch as the bolts 29 passing through apertures in the medial element 30 of the U-shaped legmember ll. indicated the. manner in which the rear leg element 21 is welded to the upper panel member at a slightly higher level so that the medial ele- In broken lines in Figure 3 is ment 30 of the leg member I! is inclined to conform to the forward-downward slope of an inclined floor also indicated in broken lines.

It will be seen that the spaced apart portions of the side panels |8 of the upper panel member give the middle standard a hollow form, and in these portions of the side panels l8 at about the seat level are provided bearings 3| formed from the metal of the panels. Each chair seat in a row of connected seating has a left-hand side bracket 32 mounted on the left hand side thereof and a right hand side bracket 33 mounted on the right hand side thereof. (These positions appear to be reversed in Figures 4 and because in these views the seats are seen looking toward the rear instead of toward the front.) On each left-hand side bracket 32 is mounted a pivot pin 34 disposed in the bearing 3| of the adjacent standard with an oil-less bearing member 35 interposed between the bearing and the pivot pin. On the right hand side bracket 33 of each seat is mounted a pivot pin 36 disposed in the adjacent bearing 3| of the standard with an oil-less hearing member 31 interposed between the bearing and the pivot pin.

The inner end of each pivot pin 36 is provided with a forwardly extending arm 38 inside the hollow of the middle standard and movable with the pivot pin 36. To the forward end of this arm 38 is attached a bracket 39 having an aperture through which passes an adjustment screw 40. The lower or head end 4| of the adjustment screw 40 engages beneath the bracket 39 and the upper end of the adjustment screw is provided with a threaded collar 42 threaded into the lower end of a helical spring 43 which extends upwardly within the hollow middle standard and has its upper end attached to a tab 44 secured to the upper end of the standard. By this means concealed within the standard, the seat is normally urged to an upwardly tilted position of non-use, and the force with which the seat is thus raised may be adjusted by turning the adjustment screw 48 to increase or decrease the tension on the helical spring 43. The head 4| of the adjustment screw 40 is accessible from the exterior of the standard through the lower opening between the spaced apart portions of the side panels l8.

Stop means are provided for limiting the pivotal movements of the seat to a lowered position for occupancy and to a raised position of non-use. These means comprise rubber bumpers 45 and 46 disposed in housings 41, 48 formed in the rearward ends of the seat brackets 32, 33 respectively (see Figures 3 and 4). The side panels l8 of the standards upper panel member l6 are turned mutually inwardly and secured together in their regions rearwardly of and below the bearings 3| thus forming raoeways on opposite sides of the standard concentric with the bearings 3| and terminated by shoulders 49 and 50 (see Figures 1-3) The upper surfaces of the rubber bumpers 45 and 46 contact the upper shoulders 49 to limit lowering movement of the seat, whereas the lower surfaces of the rubber bumpers 45 and 46 contact the lower shoulder 50 to limit raising movement of the seat.

An arm rest 5| is secured to the top of each middle standard by means of pairs of brackets 52 secured to the upper inside surfaces of the panels l8 as by welding, said brackets 52 having tabs 53 thereon extending mutually inwardly, then upwardly and outwardly to form lugs which are engaged in keyhole slots or openings 54 in the underside of the arm rest 5| so that the arm rest may be assembled to the standard without screws by merely forcibly sliding the arm rest to position of engagement with the lugs. As shown the tab 44 to which the upper end of the spring 43 is attached, is integrally formed with one of the tabs 53. If desired all of these tabs may be formed integrally with the upper ends of the panels l8 instead of being separate weldedon brackets as shown.

In the modified form of middle standard shown in Figures 8-11, the upper panel member I6 is a unitary metal sheet bent to form side panels I8 and a connecting front portion 55. The lower U-shaped leg member I1 of the standard has a medial element 30 adapted for attachment to the floor as by means of bolts 29 and upwardly extending front and rear leg elements I9 and 21 respectively. In this construction, the front and rear leg elements are adapted for attachment to the front and rear respectively of the lower part of the upper panel member, each element at a selected elevation so as to adjust the medial element 30 relative to the upper panel member and adapt the standard to different floor inclines. Figure 8 shows the standard assembled for a lever floor, Figure 10 shows the standard assembled for a forwardly-downwardly inclined floor, and Figure 11 shows the standard assembled for a rearwardly-downwardly inclined floor.

While but several specific embodiments of the invention have been herein shown and described, it will be understood that numerous details may be altered or omitted without departing from the spirit of the invention as defined by the following claims.

We claim:

1. In connected seating, a chair supporting standard for supporting adjacent sides of adjacent chairs, said standard comprising: an upper panel member provided with means for the attachment of the adjacent sides of chair seats and chair backs, and a lower U-shaped leg member having its medial element adapted for attachment to a floor with its leg elements extending upwardly therefrom, said leg elements being initially bendable relative to the medial element and being adapted for attachment to the front and rear respectively of the lower part of said upper panel member at selected elevations for varying the angular disposition of the medial element relative to the upper panel member and thus adapting the standard to different floor inclines.

2. A chair structure comprising: spaced upright supporting standards, one of said standards comprising upright side panels connected along their forward dges and extending rearwardly therefrom in spaced apart relation and finally being turned mutually inwardly and then rearwardly and being secured together in their rearward regions to form a rearwardly extending wall, and the spaced apart forward portions of said panels forming therebetween a hollow in the standard open at its lower end; a chair seat pivotally mounted on said standards for movement about a horizontal axis to a lowered position for occupancy and to an upwardly tilted position of non-use, the pivotal mounting of the seat on the hollow standard comprising a pivot pin on the seat extending through a bearing in one of said standards side panels and into said hollow; an arm on the inner end of said pivot pin and movable therewith within the hollow of said standard, said arm extending from the pin in a generally forwardly direction; a spring disposed within the hollow of said standard and having its upper end connected to the standard above the level of the seat; and means connecting the lower end of said spring to the forward end of said arm whereby the spring normally urges the arm and the seat toward the seats upwardly tilted position of non-use, said means being adjustable for adjusting the tension on the spring and being accessible through the open lower end of the hollow formed between said standards panels.

3. A chair structure comprising: spaced upright chair supporting standards, one of said standards comprising upright side panels connected along their forward edges and extending rearwardly therefrom in spaced apart relation and finally being turned mutually inwardly and then rearwardly and being secured together in their rearward regions to form a rearwardly extending wall, and th spaced apart forward portions of said panels forming therebetween a hollow in the standard open at its lower end; a chair seat pivotally mounted on said standards for movement about a horizontal axis to a lowered position for occupancy and to an upwardly tilted position of non-use, the pivotal mounting of the seat on the hollow standard comprising a pivot pin on the seat extending through a hearing in one of said standards side panels and into said hollow; an arm on the inner end of said pivot pin and movable therewith within the hollow of said standard, said arm xtending from the pin in a generally forwardly direction; a helical spring disposed within the hollow of said standard and having its upper end connected to the standard above the level of the seat; an adjustment screw having a threaded upper end engaging in the lower coils of the helical spring and having a lower head end; a bracket connected to the forward end of said arm and to the lower head end of said adjustment screw whereby the spring normally urges the screw, the bracket, the arm and the seat toward the seats upwardly tilted position of non-use, said adjustment screw extending through and being turnable in said bracket and having its lower head and engaging said bracket, whereby turning movement of the screw adjusts the tension on the spring, and said lower head end of the adjustment screw being accessible through the open lower end of the hollow formed between said standards panels.

4. In connected seating, a chair supporting standard for supporting adjacent sides of adjacent chair backs and chair seats having projecting stops thereon, said standard comprising: a lower leg element adapted for attachment to the floor; upper sheet metal side panels secured to the upper end of said leg element, said panels being connected along their forward edges and having their forward portions spaced apart and provided with bearings therein adapted to pivotally support the adjacent sides of adjacent chair seats; said side panels being turned mutually inwardly and secured together in their regions rearwardly of and below said bearings to form raceways on opposite sides of the standard concentric with said bearings and terminated by shoulders rearwardly of and below said bearings, said raceways accommodating the projecting stops on adjacent seats and said shoulders being adapted to engage said stops for limiting the pivotal movements of said seats; said side panels being also turned mutually inwardly in their regions rearwardly of and above said bearings and into meeting engagement and thence extending rearwardly and being secured together to form a rearwardly extending wall of two-ply sheet metal adapted to support adjacent sides of adjacent chair backs fastened thereto on opposite sides thereof.

5. In connected seating, a chair supporting standard for supporting adjacent sides of adjacent chair seats having projecting stops thereon, said standard comprising: a lower leg element adapted for attachment to the floor upper sheet metal side panels secured to the upper end of said leg element, said panels being connected along their forward edges and having their forward portions spaced apart and provided with bearings therein adapted to pivotally support the adjacent sides of adjacent chair seats; said side panels being turned mutually inwardly and secured together in their regions rearwardly of and below said bearings to form raceways on 0pposite sides of the standard concentric with said bearings and terminated by shoulders rearwardly of and below said bearings, said raceways accommodating the projecting stops on adjacent seats and said shoulders being adapted to engage said stops for limiting the pivotal movements of said seats.

ALFRED C. HOVE'N. WALTER E. NORDMARK.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,148,905 Kinner Aug. 3, 1915 1,210,518 Nolan Jan. 2, 1917 1,291,413 Clufi Jan. 14, 1919 1,351,268 Travers Aug. 31, 1920 1,364,181 Cluif Jan. 4, 1921 1,743,802 Andress Jan. 14, 1930 1,948,200 Bromagem Feb. 20, 1934 2,078,373 Dorton Apr. 27, 1937 2,256,893 Cable Sept. 23, 1941 2,347,931 Bromagem May 2, 1944 2,500,135 Nordmark Mar. 7, 1950 

